Stencil-cutting machine.



m. 630,970. Patented Aug. 15,1899.

. H. A. BUCK.

STENCIL CUTTING MACHINE.

(Application filed Sept. 19, 1898.)

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No. 630,970. Patented Aug. [5, I899. H. A. BUCK.

STENCIL CUTTING MACHINE.

{Application filed Sept. 19, 1898.)

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H. A. BUCK. STENCIL CUTTING MACHINE.

(Application filed Sept. 19, 1898.)

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M 3 RN news co, wowaumou wnsmumcm n c NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY A. BUCK, OF THOMPSONVILLE, CONNECTICUT.

STENCIL-CUTTING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part 6f Letters Patent No. 630,970, dated August15,1899. Application filed September 19, 1898- Serial No. 691,299. (Nomodel.)

Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inStencil-Cutting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a stencil-cutting machine which has letteredor numbered complementary punch and die disks that are rotated togetherby hand for bringing the desired punch and die plunger intocommunication with a master-plunger that can be depressed by a lever forregistering the disks and cutting the stencil material when the properpunch and die are in position, the oscillation of the lever besidesreciprocating the master-plunger also feeding the stencil 2o materialinto position for the following cut.

The object of this invention is the production of a durable machinewhich will cut the stencil outlines accurately and sharply and which canbe handled conveniently and rap- 2 5 idly without danger of destroyingor damaging the stencil which is being formed.

The machine embodying the invention that is illustrated in theaccompanying drawings has a bed with an arbor, rotatable together,

upon which are a pair of connected disks,

one bearing an annular series of fixed dies and the other bearing anannular series of reciprocating spring-elevated plungers, with punchesthat cooperate with the dies in cut- 3 5 ting the letters or figures,the latter disk also being provided as far as possible from its axiswith a series of registering notches. The bed also has a post, andrigidly supported by this post and the disk-arbor is an arm that 0projects forward and near its free end supports ahand-lever that isprovided with a master-plunger arranged to engage with and communicateits motion to the head of the punch-plunger that is movedbeneath it. The

4 5 master-plunger is provided with a locking-lug which during thedownward movement of the plunger engages the proper notch and registersand locks the disk so the punch and die will accurately cut. A spring isarranged for lifting the lever, together with the master-plunger andpunch-plunger that is engaged by the master-plunger, after eachdepression. Feed-rolls for advancing the stencil material are mounted atthe free end of the arm and complementary rolls are adjustably supportedby the bed in position to assist in advancing the material. A ratchetewheel connected with one of the upper feedrolls is engaged by aspring-pawl that is connected with a slide which is reciprocated by theoscillation of the lever. This machine also has a guide and stripperhaving leaves between which the stencil material is inserted that coversthe ends of all the punches and dies except the punch and dieimmediately beneath the master-plunger, so that the stencil material canbe easily thrust into position to be out and when out will be strippedfrom the punch and die so that it may be correctly advanced by thefeed-rolls.

Of the drawings, Figure 1 shows a plan of this machine with portions ofthe arm, the disks, the guide and stripper, and the bed broken away.Fig. 2 is a vertical section of this machine. Fig. 3 is a plan ofportions of the arm, the disks, and the bed, showing the lever andmaster-plunger. Fig. 4: is a view of the front of the machine, and Fig.5 is a view of the under side of a portion of the punch-disk.

The bed 1 of the machine is desirably cast to shape of iron withsupporting-legs 2. An upright arbor 3 is located at the center of thebed, and mounted so as to be rotatable upon this arbor are two disks 4.The lower of the disks is provided near its periphery with an annularseries of openings 5, and secured over these openings are die-plates 6,with the letters, figures, or other symbols to be cut in the stencilmaterial. The upper disk is provided near its periphery with an annularseries of openings 7. Loosely supported in these are the plungers 8,that on their lower faces have the punches that cooperate with the diesfor cutting the stencil material. The upper ends of these punch-plungersare provided with grooves 9, and they are held up by spring-plates 10,that are fastened to the under side of the upper disk by a ring 11, thatis secured in place by screws. The upper disk has inside of theplunger-openings an annular series of openings or notches 12, that arewider at the top than at the bottom, for receiving the part thatregisters and locks the disks in correct position when an outline is tobe cut. The disks are shown as fastened together by a pin 13; but theymay be connected so that they will rotate together in any suitablemanner.

An upright post 14: is located at the back of the bed, and bolted tothis post and to the arbor, so as to extend above the disks and projectforward toward the front of the machine over the bed, is an arm 15. Thisarm is nowhere connected with the disks or with the bed in front of themiddle. In a mortise in the front end of this arm a lever 16 is pivoted.This lever at its front end has a handle 17, and connected with theother end is a spring 18, the tension of which keeps the handle end ofthe lever lifted. A set-screw 19 may be provided for determining thedownward movement of the back end of the lever.

Loosely placed in a perforation through the arm, near its free end, isthe master-plunger 20. This master-plunger is recessed, and thehand-lever passes through that recess, so that the movements of thelever are communicated to the master-plunger. The lower end of themaster-plunger is provided with a hook 21, that extends in such manneras to project into the grooves 9 in the heads of the punchplungers thatare brought beneath the masterplunger as the disks are rotated, so thatthe reciprocation of the master-plunger will reciprocate thepunch-plunger that is directly beneath.- A stud or lug 22 projects fromthe master-plunger in such a direction as to pass into one of theopenings or notches 12 and register the disks and then lock them incorrect position when the plungers are depressed for cutting the letter,figure, or symbol in the stencil material.

Supported at the front end of the arm by screw-studs 23 are rolls 24.The shaft of one roll bears a ratchet-wheel 25. In an opening in the armis a slide 26, with a beveled end that projects into the path ofmovement of the hand lever. Joined to this slide is a pawl 27, thehooked end of which engages with the teeth of the ratchet-wheel, whileto the other end a spring 28 is connected to keep the hooked end inengagement with the teeth of the ratchet-wheel and also draw the slideback after it has been forced out by the depression of the hand-lever.The depression of the hand-lever moves the slide and causes the pawl torotate the ratchet-wheel and turn the feed-roll so as to advance thematerial the required distance just before the punch and die operate tocut.

Two complementary feed rolls 29 are mounted upon a block 30, that issupported by spring-plates 31, fastened to the under one position thelower rolls will be depressed to facilitate placing the material betweenthe rolls and the punch and die disks. When the rod is turned so thatits flattened side is down, the lower rolls will spring up and press thematerial against the upper rolls.

In this machine all the punch-plunger-supporting plates are secured inposition by the single ring 11, held by screws to the under side of theupper disk, which, together with the lower disk carrying the dies, iseasily and quickly rotated by hand until the desired punch and die arebeneath the masterplunger.

The registering notches that receive the locking-lug that is on themaster-plunger are such a distance from the axis of the upper disk thatthe error or variation in registration resulting from wear of the partsis reduced to a minimum.

A finger 33 is secured to the end of the arm and arranged to point toletters, figures, or symbols marked upon the upper disk in such positionthat the finger indicates the letter, figure, or symbol of the punch anddie that is in operative position beneath the masterplunger.

Stencils can be cut from sheets of any size with this machine, for thearm being supported only at the back and at the axis of the disks leavesa free space at the frontend for the insertion of the material betweenthe punches and dies.

The guide and stripper 34:, which is inserted between the upper andlower disks, is formed of thin sheet metal bent so that the upper leafcovers the lower faces of the punches and the lower leaf covers theupper faces of the dies. The upper leaf has its front end bent upwardlyand secured to the front end of the arm, and openings are made throughboth leaves to permit the punch that is directly beneath themaster-plunger to operate upon the material to be cut.

The material to be cut is quickly inserted into position between theleaves of the guide and stripper, and then a turn of the rod 32 permitsthe lower rolls to lift the material into contact with the upper rolls.As the leaves of the guide and stripper cover all of the punches anddies except the one to be made use of the material can be easilyinserted into the position necessary for it to occupy for beingperfectly cut. The material when held from the punches and dies in thismanner can be surely and correctly advanced by the feed-rolls, forshould it buckle or bend its out portions cannot catch on the punches soas to interfere with its feed, nor will the cut portions engage thepunches so as to become dam:

aged or torn as the material is being advanced by the feed. These leavesalso strip the material from the punch when it is raised after cutting.

The outlines of a stencil cut withthis machine will be sharp and true,the letters, figures,or symbols will be accurately spaced, and thematerial will issue in a flat smooth condition.

I claim as my invention- 1. A stencil-cutting machine having a bed,punch and die carrying disks rotatably supported upon the bed, an armsupported at the center of the disks and having a free endthatprojects-forward above the disks and bed with which it is notdirectly connected in front of the center, a lever supported by the arm,a master-plunger connected with the lever and having one end adapted toengage the punch-plungers as they are brought beneath it, a lugprojecting from the masterplunger, an annular row of teeth projectingupwardly from the punch disk near the punches in position to be engagedby the lug projecting from the master-pl unger when the master-plungeris depressed, and feed-rolls supported by the arm and adapted to berotated by the movements of the lever, substantially as specified.

2. A stencil-cuttin g machine having a bed, disks rotatably supported bythe bed, dies fixed to the lower disk, plungers loosely carried by theupper disk, spring-plates for bolding the punch-plungers, a ringsecuring the spring-plates to the under side of the upper disk, an armsupported at the center of the disks and having a free end that projectsforward above the disks and bed with which it is not directly connectedin front of the center, and a lever supported by the arm and adapted todepress the punch-plungers, substantially as specified.

3. In combination in a stencil-cutting machine, a bed, rotatable disksbearing punches and dies, an arm projecting over the disks, a lever foroperating the punches and dies,

and a guide and stripper formed of two leaves in a single piece, oneleaf covering the lower ends of all of the punches in front of thecenter arbor except one and the other leaf cover ing the upper faces ofall of the dies in front of the center arbor except one, said guide andstripper having portions extending down the side and front faces of thebed for hold ing it in position, substantially as specifieda 4. Incombination in a stencil-cutting machine, a bed, an upright arborsupported near the middle of the bed, a pair of connected disksrotatably mounted upon the arbor, dies secured to the lower disk,punches movably supported by the upper disk, an arm supported by thearbor and an upright post at the back of the bed and projecting forwardabove the disks and the bed with which it is not directly connected infront of the center, a lever pivotally supported by the arm, amaster-plunger loosely supported by the arm and connected with thelever, teeth on the punchdisk, a lug on the plunger adapted to engagethe teeth, a slide supported by the arm and adapted to be moved by thedepression of the lever, feed-rolls mounted upon the arm and adapted tobe rotated by the movement of the slide, spring-plates attached to theunder side of the bed, rolls mounted upon the springplates, anindicating-finger attached to one side of the arm,index characters onthe punchdisk, and a two-leaf guide and stripper extending between thedisks and covering the faces of all of the dies and punches in front ofthe arbor except one, substantially as specified.

HENRY A. BUCK. Witnesses:

HARRY R. WILLIAMS, CHAS. D. KING.

